Method of constructing moccasin-shoes.



H. E. MERRILL. METHOD OF CONSTRUCTING MOCCASIAN SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 15. 1915.

Patented June 26, 1917.

NVEVTOR W A TTOR/IE Y 50 "amount of time and labor, and whereby,

- aire me@ HABEY E. MEBBILL, OF MONMOUTH, MAINE.

METHOD OF CON STBUCTING MOCCASIN-SHOES.

mames.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 26, 1917.

I Application fired December 15, 1915. Serial m. 66,913.

I To all whom z't may concem:

i structing Moccasn-Shoes; and I do hereby -dec'lare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and

exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which 'it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a novel method of making moccasin shoes.

In making the common type of moccasin the sole and vamp is formed 'of a single piece of buckskin or other flexible leather which is puckered by hand and drawn back over the. last, and the upper portion of the moccasin is then secured thereto, so that the resulting moccasin'structure is made up, essentially, of the lower continuous sole and vamp member, extending up around the sides of the moccasin, and the member 'which forms the top of the moccasin between the upper edges of the sole and vamp member and around the ankle. Such constructions involve using relatively large pieces of leather or buckskin for the sole and vamp member, much larger than corresponds to the actual area of the member in the completedconstruction, because of the gathering and puckerng of this member where sewed to the upper. Moreover, such constructions not only are uneconomical for this reason, but there is considerable loss and waste of small odd pieces of the leather from which the bottom member is made. It is furthermore necessary to use the highest grade material for these bottom sole and vamp members, because of the wear that must be withstood by the sole, even though much less wear comes upon the vamp portion, and such structures are uneconomical for this reason also.

The present invention relates to a novel and improved'method of constructing moccasin shoes whereby such disadvantages of the old constructions are largely overcome or minimized, and whereby, further-more, the moccasin can be made with a 'small finally, an economy of leather is efl'ected and waste thereof minimized.

The invention will be described more in detail in connection with the accompanying 'drawings, in which i Figure 1 shows the elements used in constructing the moccasin of the present invention; I

F ig. 2 shows the sole and vamp members partly secured together;

Fig. 3 shows the elements separated from each other; and

Fig. 4 shows the completed moccasin.

In constructing the novel moccasin of the present invention, the sole and vamp members are separately cu't 'and need not be of the same material The upper part of the moccasin is usually made of two members 5 and 6, which can be preliminarily joined together in the manner indicated in Fig. 3

before the upper is secured to the restofthe structure. A flexible member (not shown)` will also in practice be secured to the member 6 and will extend up between the front opening of the upper member 5, being commonly secured also to the member 5.

In constructng the novel moccasin of the present invention the sole 1 and the vamp 2 are first secured together, by stitching, cementing, or otherwise, as indicated in Fig. 2, so that the end seam 4: of the vamp member 2 comes in the middle of the moccasin, and

advantageously also at the inside of the moccasin where it will be subjected to less wear. This securing of the vamp to ?the sole can readily be effected by first stitching or fastening one end of the vamp to the sole and then continuing around the sole with the vamp until the ends of the vamp can be secured together. This attaching of the vamp 'to the sole eliminates the heel seam, and all other seams except the single seam at or near themiddle of the moccasin. here a two piece vamp is used, both seams should be near the* middle of the moccasin, but by the use of a one piece vamp only one seam is necessary.

It will be noted also that the vamp is a the vamp to the sole is accomplished by springing the vamp to make it conform to the Outline of the sole, which in turn is trmmed so that it conforms to the last. When the sole has been thus fitted, and the Vamp has been made to conform thereto and has been secured thereto, the last is inserted and the vamp is fitted and made to conform to the last, thus giving to it the desired shape.

After the vamp -has been thus formed, the upper is secured thereto. This securing of the upper and vamp does not require any appreciable puckering and gathering of the vamp, such as has been the common practice, and in fact necessary, with moccasins as commonly constructed.

An outer sole 7 can be attached to the sole 1, using the latter as an inner or welt sole, and stitching or nailing the outer sole thereto around the outer edge. The outer sole will of course conform to the inner or welt sole in shape, and usually also in size.

Since the vamp and sole are of separate pieces of leather, they may be made of different quality of stock, particularly since the Vamp is subjected to much less wear than the sole. The vamp may thus be made of less valuable material which would otherwise be wasted or unsuitable for use in moccasin Construction; without prejudice to the moccasn structure. The parts of the moccasin are also such that they are conducive to economies in cutting of the leather; the vamp in particular being of a shape which permits it to be cut with practically no waste, by the interlocking of the patterns.

If desired the vamp may be Secured to the sole in such a way that the portion of the vamp in contact with the sole is on the underside thereof, so that by sewing or nailing an outer sole thereto, the vamp is secured between the inner and outer soles; in this way the lower edge seam thereof is hidden, and the only exposed seams are the end seam 4 and the upper seam between the vamp and the upper. The arrangement of the seam 4 near the middle of the moccasin eliminates the heel seam so that the Vamp is continuous at this point, and the structure thereby further distinguished from moccasins as heretofore commonlv constructed.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the novel method of the present invention comprises starting with the sole and attaching the vamp tlereto by sewing the vamp around the sole, inserting a last and fitting the vamp thereto, then closing the seam in the Vamp, and finally attaching the upper to the Vamp to complete the moccasin.

I claim:

1. The method of constructing moccasin shoes which comprises first securing a Vamp to a sole, inserting a last, shaping the Vamp to the last before an upper is attached, and subsequently attaching the upper to the ramp to complete the moccasin.

2. The method of constructing moccasin shoes which comprises first securing a vamp to a sole, with the ends of the vamp near the middle of the sole, inserting a last, shaping the Vamp to the last before an upper is attached, and subsequently attaching the upper to the vamp to complete the movcasin.

3. The method of constructing moccasin shoes which comprises first securing a Vamp to a sole with the ends of the vamp neanthe middle of the sole, inserting a last, shaping the vamp to the last before an upper is attached, then closing the seam in the Vamp. and subsequently attaching the upper to the vamp to complete the moccasin.

4. The method of constructing moet-asin shoes which comprises first securing a Vamp to a sole, inserting a last, shaping the vamp to the last before an upper is attached, attaching the upper to the vamp, and securing an outer sole to the first sole.

5. The method of constructing moccasin shoes which comprises first securing a vamp to a sole with the ends of the vamp near the middle of the sole, inserting a last, shaping i the vamp to the last before an upper s attached, then closing the seam in the `vamp, attaching the upper to the Vamp, and securing an outer sole to the first sole.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

HARRY E. MERRILOL. 

